A.J. Mahari | Counselor, Life/Mental Health Coach

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Cluster B’s & “Cold Empathy” – It’s Not Empathy At All

Some online are trying to forward the idea or “reality” that those with Narcissistic Personality or sociopaths or psychopaths can have limited “cold empathy” for you conditionally only when you are being the object of supply to them they want, admiring them, giving excessive attention to them or when you are providing, in whatever way, that narcissistic supply that gives them “internal relief” no matter how briefly. I don’t agree with this at all. What do you think? I’d love to have you leave your comments below. It’s quite well known that Cluster B personality disordered people do not have empathy. How then could they have “cold empathy” with no ability to have any empathy whatsoever? I say they absolutely can’t and they do not have empathy.

People who have a cluster B personality disorder do not have empathy. That is one of the definitive diagnostic measure of identifying (to a degree) Borderline Personality Disorder, Narcissistic Personality Disorder or Anti-Social Personality Disorder – sociopath or psychopath. Many with Borderline Personality can show empathy but it’s not usually empathy that isn’t about “self” preservation and defense against previous “acting out” or “acting in” projecting on you or being very angry with you because those feelings they may have after a rage or silent treatment, punishing behavior which is not loving they are trying to show you they feel bad more to be soothed and reassured that you are not going to abandon them.

Empathy requires the ability emotionally to really feel how someone else feels, understand their emotions, put yourself in their position and truly feel for them in an understanding, care, and giving way.